U.S. patent number 5,992,665 [Application Number 09/181,786] was granted by the patent office on 1999-11-30 for portable display case.
Invention is credited to Richard W. Deeter.
United States Patent |
5,992,665 |
Deeter |
November 30, 1999 |
Portable display case
Abstract
A see-through display case has a plurality of compartments for
storing, displaying and transporting a plurality of collectibles.
Each case has an open front face which is closed by a clear plastic
cover hinged to the front edge of the top surface. A case may be
attached to vertically adjacent cases by means of a pair of tongue
and groove interlocks integral to both the top and bottom surfaces
and to laterally adjacent cases by a tongue on one case and a
groove on the adjacent case to form a unit of interconnected cases.
Each of the interlocks is activated by sliding a first of the
adjacent cases front to back relative to the other adjacent case.
An array of cases as large as two by two can be transported using
an attachable handle which can be connected to the uppermost,
centrally positioned pair of tongue and groove interlocks.
Inventors: |
Deeter; Richard W. (Erie,
PA) |
Family
ID: |
22665797 |
Appl.
No.: |
09/181,786 |
Filed: |
October 28, 1998 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
220/23.4;
206/504; 220/23.6; 220/23.86; 220/4.27; 220/507; 220/662 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A45C
7/0045 (20130101); B65D 25/2826 (20130101); B65D
21/0204 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A45C
7/00 (20060101); B65D 21/02 (20060101); B65D
25/28 (20060101); B65D 021/028 () |
Field of
Search: |
;220/662,507,23.4,23.6,23.2,23.83,23.86,4.26,4.27,377,480,826,759,768,526,553
;206/504 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Castellano; Stephen
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Thomson; Richard K.
Claims
I claim:
1. A display case for storing, displaying and transporting
collectibles comprising:
a) a see-through plastic container having a plurality of
compartments, said container having surfaces including an open
front, a back, a top, a bottom, a first side and a second side;
b) a pivotable cover for said open front;
c) first vertical interlocking means on said top;
d) second vertical interlocking means on said bottom of said
display case engageable with said first vertical interlocking means
on said top of a vertically adjacent display case to interconnect
said adjacent display cases to form a unit;
e) an attachable handle connectable to said top of an uppermost
display case;
whereby said handle can be utilized to transport a unit of said
display cases with the collectibles contained therein.
2. The display case of claim 1 wherein said see-through plastic is
selected from the group consisting of colorless and tinted.
3. The display case of claim 1 wherein said pivotable cover is
hinged to a forward edge portion of said top.
4. The display case of claim 3 wherein said pivotable cover has a
hand-grippable indentation near its lower edge.
5. The display case of claim 3 wherein said pivotable cover has an
rearwardly extending flange extending from a distal edge of said
cover which overlaps and frictionally engages a forward edge of
said bottom of said display case and a rearwardly extending flange
protruding from each of first and second lateral edges of said
cover engaging said first and second sides of said display case,
said flanges securing said cover in its closed position.
6. The display case of claim 1 further comprising third
interlocking means on said first side and fourth interlocking means
on said second side engageable with said third interlocking means
on said first side of a laterally adjacent display case to
interconnect said adjacent display cases to form a unit.
7. The display case of claim 6 wherein at least one of said first
and second interlocking means and one of said and fourth
interlocking means comprises a T-shaped groove extending axially
along its respective surface and a second one of said first and
second interlocking means and one of said third and fourth
interlocking means comprises a T-shaped tongue extending axially
along its respective surface.
8. The display case of claim 7 wherein said first interlocking
means comprises a T-shaped tongue and a T-shaped groove spaced
laterally therefrom by a distance d.sub.1 on said top and said
second interlocking means comprises a corresponding T-shaped groove
and a corresponding T-shaped tongue spaced laterally therefrom by a
distance d.sub.1 on said bottom.
9. The display case of claim 8 wherein when said two display cases
are laterally interconnected, a T-shaped groove of a first
interconnected case will be spaced from a T-shaped tongue of an
adjacent interconnected case by a distance d.sub.2, wherein d.sub.2
is equal to d.sub.1.
10. The display case of claim 9 wherein said attachable handle can
be connected to said T-shaped groove and said T-shaped tongue on
said laterally adjacent interconnected display cases to permit
transporting of said display case unit.
11. The display case of claim 1 wherein said first interlocking
means on said top of said display case comprises one T-shaped
tongue and one T-shaped groove extending parallel thereto and
spaced therefrom by a distance d.sub.1 and said second interlocking
means on said bottom comprises a T-shaped groove and a T-shaped
tongue spaced by a distance d.sub.1 which can be axially slid onto
the corresponding tongue and groove of a vertically adjacent
display case positioned beneath said respective display case.
12. The display case of claim 1 wherein said plurality of
compartments comprises two lowermost compartments and two uppermost
compartments situated thereabove.
13. The display case of claim 12 wherein each of said plurality of
compartments are generally rectangular in both lateral cross
section and in axial cross section.
14. The display case of claim 13 wherein said each of said
plurality of compartments has equal volume.
15. A display case for storing, displaying and transporting
collectibles comprising:
a) a see-through plastic container having a plurality of
compartments, said containers having surfaces including an open
front, a back, a top, a bottom, a first side and a second side;
b) a pivotable cover for said open front;
c) first horizontal interlocking means on said first side;
d) second horizontal interlocking means on said second side
engageable with said first horizontal interlocking means on said
first side of a laterally adjacent display case to interconnect
said adjacent display cases to form a unit;
e) an attachable handle connectable to said top of at least one
uppermost display case;
whereby said handle can be utilized to transport a unit of said
display cases with the collectibles contained therein.
16. The display case of claim 15 further comprising third
interlocking means on said top and fourth interlocking means on
said bottom engageable with said third interlocking means on said
top of a vertically adjacent display case to interconnect said
adjacent display cases to form a unit.
17. The display case of claim 16 wherein said attachable handle is
connectable to third interlocking means on each of the tops of the
two uppermost laterally interconnected display cases to transport a
unit of said display cases.
18. A display case for storing, displaying and transporting
collectibles comprising:
a) a see-through plastic container having a plurality of
compartments, said container having surfaces including an open
front, a back, a top, a bottom, a first side and a second side;
b) a see-through cover hingeably attached to a front edge of said
top to permit access to each of said plurality of compartments;
c) means to interconnect said display case with an adjacent display
case to form a unit,
d) an attachable handle connectable to a top portion of said
display case unit to permit said unit with its stored collectibles
to be transported;
whereby said hingeably attached cover can be pivoted upwardly to
open said front portion of said display case without interference
from said adjacent interconnected display case.
19. The display case of claim 18 wherein said means to interconnect
said display case to an adjacent display case comprises means to
interconnect said display case to a vertically adjacent display
case.
20. The display case of claim 18 wherein said means to interconnect
said display case to an adjacent display case comprises means to
interconnect said display case to a horizontally adjacent display
case.
Description
BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It has become all the rage to collect a variety of items including
model cars, dolls and stuffed animals. Of particular interest of
late, are the BEANIE BABIES stuffed toys manufactured and sold by
Ty Inc. Various paperboard carriers are being manufactured as
display devices.
The present invention provides a competitively priced display case
made of durable, transparent or opaque plastic to which an
attachable handle can be affixed and the display case, with its
collectible treasures, transported. Each display case has a
plurality of compartments, in the preferred embodiment, four equal
volume areas, and is provided with a hinged cover for its front
face. The cover is clear plastic with four bubble windows which
permit viewing of the compartments' contents. The cover is attached
to a front edge of the top so that the cover can pivot up to
provide access to the compartments or downwardly to snap in place
to provide securement of the compartments and their contents for
possible transport. The pivoting of the front cover can be
accomplished without contacting, or interference from, an adjacent
interlocked case.
Each case is configured with first interlocking means on the top
and a second interlocking means on the bottom to enable vertically
adjacent cases to be interconnected. Similarly, first interlocking
means is provided on one end and second interlocking means is
provided on the opposite end so that laterally adjacent cases can
be interconnected. The means for interlocking vertically adjacent
cases is preferably one tongue and one groove on the top and one
groove and one tongue on the bottom to engage a vertically adjacent
case. The vertically adjacent cases are interlocked by aligning a
back of one of the vertically adjacent cases with the front of the
case beneath it and sliding it from front toward the back of the
lower case to cause its groove and tongue to slide into locking
engagement with the tongue and groove of the other case. The means
for interconnecting a case to a laterally adjacent case comprises a
tongue on one end and a groove on the other. The pair of laterally
adjacent cases are interlocked by positioning a tongue on one side
of one case in front of the groove on an adjacent case (or visa
versa) and sliding the case rearwardly so the tongue slides into
the groove. The attachable handle can be secured to the top of an
individual display case by sliding its groove and tongue onto the
tongue and groove of that case, or the handle may be turned end for
end and secured to the tops of two adjacent cases which have been
interconnected by sliding the handle onto a groove of one case and
a tongue of a laterally adjacent interconnected case, to provide a
transportable unit comprised of as many of four interlocked
cases.
Various other features, advantages and characteristics of the
present invention will become apparent to one of ordinary skill in
the art after a reading of the following specification.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The preferred embodiment(s) of the present invention is/are
described in conjunction with the associated drawings in which like
features are indicated with like reference numerals and in
which
FIG. 1 is a front view of a first embodiment of the portable
display case of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a top view of the first embodiment;
FIG. 3 is an end view of the first embodiment; and
FIG. 4 is a front view of four interconnected display cases of the
first embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT(S)
A first preferred embodiment of the display case of the present
invention is shown in FIGS. 1-3 generally at 20. Display case 20,
which is made of a durable see-through (transparent) plastic which
may be colorless or tinted with a solid pigment, has a plurality of
compartments 22 which permit storage, display and transport of a
plurality of collectibles. Suitable materials for display case 20
include styrene, high-impact styrene and k-resins, with the
high-impact styrene being preferred. In this the preferred
embodiment, the compartments are formed by one vertical wall 24 and
one horizontal wall 26 dissecting case 20 into four equal volumes.
Case 20 comprises a see-through container which has a top 28,
bottom 30, back wall 32, open front 34, first side 36, and second
side 38. A cover 40 made of colorless plastic has four viewing
windows and is hinged to the front edge 42 of top 28, pin 43
extending through hinge 45 defined by hinge cylinder 44 integral
with edge 42 and hinge cylinder 46 integral with cover 40. Cover 40
forms two rows of "bubble windows" into the individual compartments
with a central region 41 contacting horizontal wall 26 (see FIG.
3). Lateral flanges 48 overlap and frictionally engage first and
second sides 36 and 38, while leading edge flange 50 overlaps and
frictionally engages bottom 30. An indentation or recess 52 is
formed in the face of cover 40 providing a handle for engaging and
opening cover 40. Frictional engagement between flanges 48 and 50
and lateral and bottom sides 36, 38 and 30 hold the cover 40 closed
until recess 52 is manually engaged and cover 40 pivoted upwardly
about hinge 45 to permit access to compartments 22.
Top 28 is provided with first vertical interlocking means 54 and
bottom 30 is provided with second vertical interlocking means 60
for permitting two vertically adjacent cases 20 to be assembled
into a unit. First interlocking means 54 preferably is comprised of
a T-shaped rail or tongue 56 and a T-shaped groove 58 spaced from
tongue 56 by a distance d.sub.1. Second interlocking means 60
comprises a corresponding T-shaped groove 62 and tongue 64 which
can engage a first interlocking means 54 of a vertically adjacent
case 20b (see FIG. 4). The upper case 20a is slid rearwardly with
respect to lower case 20b with the rear portion of groove 62a
engaging the front portion of tongue 56b and the rear portion of
tongue 64a engaging the front portion of groove 58b. This will
cause the second interlocking means 60 of the upper case 20a to
engage first interlocking means 54 of the lower case 20b forming
them into a unit. There is a slight taper on case 20, front to back
(see FIG. 3) and interlocking means 54 and 60 are set back from
front face 34 a sufficient amount that interlocking means 54 and 60
do not appreciably increase the height of cases 20 nor interfere
with the cases' sitting on planar surfaces.
First lateral interlocking means 66 comprises a T-shaped tongue 68
attached to first side 36 and second lateral interlocking means 70
comprises a T-shaped groove 72 attached to second side 38.
Laterally adjacent cases 20a and 20c can be interconnected by
sliding case 20a rearwardly relative to case 20c with the rear
portion of groove 72a engaging the front portion of tongue 68c.
Cases 20a and 20c will now be formed into a display case unit.
Handle 74 is equipped with a groove 76 and a tongue 78 that can
engage the interlocking means 54 of a single case by the same
rearward sliding motion that interconnects adjacent cases 20a and
20b or 20c. Alternatively, as depicted in FIG. 4, handle 74 can be
turned end-for-end, and tongue 78 and groove 76 used to engage
groove 58a and tongue 56c on cases 20a and 20c respectively. Note,
groove 58a and tongue 56c is spaced by a distance d.sub.2 which is
equal to d.sub.1, permitting this alternative usage of handle 74.
Wedge shaped stops (not shown) are formed on tongue 56 and in
groove 58 to engage handle 74 and maintain it in its proper
position preventing undesired removal. Corresponding groove 62 and
tongue 64 are dimensioned to enable them to bypass the handle
engaging stops. As shown in FIG. 4, four cases 20 can be
interconnected to form a transportable unit using handle 74. While
larger arrays are certainly possible, a unit of four cases,
representing 16 collectibles, is the largest that can reasonably be
transported using handle 74.
It will be appreciated that the present invention provides a
transportable display case 20 that is capable of interlocking
horizontally and vertically to adjacent cases to form a unit. An
array of as many of 4 interlocked cases can be transported using a
detachable handle 74. The interlocked display cases can be
attractively arrayed on a shelf or table and used to arrange a
variety of collectibles in an orderly configuration.
While it will be appreciated that the portable display case of the
present invention is particularly well suited for storing,
displaying and transporting BEANIE BABIES stuffed toys, these
particular collectibles are merely exemplary of the types of items
which can be stored, displayed and transported by the portable
display case of the present invention.
Various changes, alternatives and modifications will become
apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art following a reading of
the foregoing specification. It is intended that any such changes,
alternatives and modifications as fall within the scope of the
appended claims be considered part of the present invention.
* * * * *